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Application of the ISE Optimized Proportional Control of the Wave Maker in a Towing Tank
PublicationThis paper presents the improvement of the wave maker control system. The wave maker is a facility widely used in hydromechanics laboratories to generate waves in towing tanks. It is equipped with an electrohydraulic drive and an actuator submerged into water. The waves are generated to model the environmental conditions for physical experiments, performed on reduced-scale models of maritime objects. The physical experiments allow...
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Development and Assessment of Regeneration Methods for Peptide-Based QCM Biosensors in VOCs Analysis Applications
PublicationCleaning a quartz crystal microbalance (QCM) plays a crucial role in the regeneration of its biosensors for reuse. Imprecise removal of a receptor layer from a transducer’s surface can lead to unsteady operation during measurements. This article compares three approaches to regeneration of the piezoelectric transducers using the electrochemical, oxygen plasma and Piranha solution methods. Optimization of the cleaning method allowed...
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Deep CNN based decision support system for detection and assessing the stage of diabetic retinopathy
PublicationThe diabetic retinopathy is a disease caused by long-standing diabetes. Lack of effective treatment can lead to vision impairment and even irreversible blindness. The disease can be diagnosed by examining digital color fundus photographs of retina. In this paper we propose deep learning approach to automated diabetic retinopathy screening. Deep convolutional neural networks (CNN) - the most popular kind of deep learning algorithms...
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Experiencing historic waterways and water landscapes of the Vistula River Delta
PublicationThe paper gives insights into the characteristics of Vistula River Delta water landscapes, referring to the process of creating land out of water by Polish, Dutch and German settlers. Based on this, the paper presents an integrated strategy formed upon studies in cultural geography and aesthetics, and focused on enhancing the unique characteristics of the region and its rediscovery by tourism. The long process of constructing Vistula...
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Effects of full displacement pile installation on the stress and deformation state of surrounding soil: review
PublicationSeveral field and model tests have been conducted to investigate the impact of pile installation on bearing capacity. However, little is known about how piles behave during installation, how they interact with the surrounding soil, and how this affects sandy soil properties. This review paper investigates the effect of pile driving on surrounding sandy soil as it compacts sandy soil near to the pile. For this purpose, various related...
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Organic solvents aggregating and shaping structural folding of protein, a case study of the protease enzyme
PublicationLow solubility of reactants or products in aqueous solutions can result in the enzymatic catalytic reactions that can occur in non-aqueous solutions. In current study we investigated aqueous solutions containing different organic solvents / deep eutectic solvents (DESs) that can influence the protease enzyme's activity, structural, and thermal stabilities. Retroviral aspartic protease enzyme is responsible for the cleavage of the...
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Divulging the anti-acetylcholinesterase activity of Colletotrichum lentis strain KU1 extract as sustainable AChE active site inhibitors
PublicationAlzheimer’s disease (AD), also called senile dementia is a neurodegenerative disease seen commonly in the elderly and is characterised by the formation of β-amyloid plaques and neurofbrillary tangles (NFT). Though a complete understanding of the disease is lacking, recent studies showed the role of the enzyme acetylcholinesterase (AChE) in pathogenesis. Finding new lead compounds from natural sources has always been a quest for...
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Quantitative Risk Assessment in Construction Disputes Based on Machine Learning Tools
PublicationA high monetary value of the construction projects is one of the reasons of frequent disputes between a general contractor (GC) and a client. A construction site is a unique, one-time, and single-product factory with many parties involved and dependent on each other. The organizational dependencies and their complexity make any fault or mistake propagate and influence the final result (delays, cost overruns). The constant will...
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Fully Automated AI-powered Contactless Cough Detection based on Pixel Value Dynamics Occurring within Facial Regions
PublicationIncreased interest in non-contact evaluation of the health state has led to higher expectations for delivering automated and reliable solutions that can be conveniently used during daily activities. Although some solutions for cough detection exist, they suffer from a series of limitations. Some of them rely on gesture or body pose recognition, which might not be possible in cases of occlusions, closer camera distances or impediments...
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The community involvement of courts: an action research study in the context of the Polish justice system
PublicationPurpose – As a rule, common courts are hermetic organizations, separated from their stakeholders by procedures based on legal provisions. For these reasons, they are often perceived as unreliable and non-transparent, and as such, they do not inspire trust among stakeholders. The authors posit that the court’s community involvement may lead to the increased accountability and legitimacy of courts, which should in turn result in...
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Biomass in biogas production: Pretreatment and codigestion
PublicationGlobally, there is increasing awareness that the implementation of ‘waste to energy’ technology is one of the best means to achieve sustainable energy development. The most popular approach is the conversion of organic-rich compounds into clean and renewable products by anaerobic digestion (AD). Biogas can be produced from agricultural residues, municipal/industrial biowastes, and sustainable biomass, especially materials that...
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Application of discrete wavelet transform in seismic nonlinear analysis of soil–structure interaction problems
PublicationSimulation of soil-structure interaction (SSI) effects is a time-consuming and costly process. However, ignoring the influence of SSI on structural response may lead to inaccurate results, especially in the case of seismic nonlinear analysis. In this paper, wavelet transform methodology has been utilized for investigation of the seismic response of soil-structure systems. For this purpose, different storey outrigger braced buildings...
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Tacit knowledge acquisition & sharing, and its influence on innovations: A Polish/US cross-country study
PublicationThis study measures the relationship between tacit knowledge sharing and innovation in the Polish (n=350) and US (n=379) IT industries. Conceptually, the study identifies the potential sources of tacit knowledge development by individuals. That is, the study examines how “learning by doing” and “learning by interaction” lead to a willingness to share knowledge and, as a consequence, to support process and product/service innovation....
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Optimum shapes and dimensions of rubber bumpers in order to reduce structural pounding during seismic excitations
PublicationLarge displacement of structures observed during seismic excitations may lead to collisions between two adjacent, insufficiently-separated buildings and may result in major damages of both of them. In many building codes, appropriate equations or approximately recommended distances between structures in order to avoid pounding hazard have been introduced. Unfortunately, further, more detailed considerations show that safety situation...
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Temperature influence on tyre/road noise on poroelastic road surface based on laboratory measurements
PublicationThe temperature effect on measured tyre/road noise is very important phenomena as it may lead to significant errors in measurement results due to substantial influence of this parameter on the obtained values. It depends mainly on the particular tyre-road combination. It is different for dense and porous as well as for bituminous and cement concrete pavements. It differs also depending on tested tyre. The correction procedure for...
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The early failure of the gamma nail and the dynamic hip screw in femurs with a wide medullary canal. A biomechanical study of intertrochanteric fractures
PublicationBackground: Intertrochanteric fractures may occur in a bone with a wide medullary canal that may lead to significant mobility of a intramedullary nail, contrary to an extramedullary device. This study evaluates the Dynamic Hip Screw and the gamma nail in AO 31.A2.1 fractures in these circumstances. Methods: Synthetic femora with canals drilled to 18 mm were used. Five fixation types were examined: a 2 - hole and a 4 – hole Dynamic...
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Swapping Space for Time: An Alternative to Time-Domain Interferometry
PublicationYoung's double-slit experiment [1] requires two waves produced simultaneously at two different points in space. In quantum mechanics the waves correspond to a single quantum object, even as complex as a big molecule. An interference is present as long as one cannot tell for sure which slit is chosen by the object. The more we know about the path, the worse the interference. In the paper we show that quantum mechanics allows for...
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Relationship between conversion rate of glucosinolates to isothiocyanates/indoles and genotoxicity of individual parts of Brassica vegetables
PublicationThe studies on the characterisation of glucosinolates (GLs) and their breakdown products in Brassicaceae species focus mainly on the edible parts. However, other products, e.g., dietary supplements, may be produced also from non-edible parts such as roots or early forms of growth: seeds or sprouts. Biological activity of these products depends on quantitative and qualitative GL composition, but is also strictly determined by GL...
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Does the Use of Cell Phones and Headphones at the Signalised Pedestrian Crossings Increase the Risk of Accident?
PublicationReduction of the number of fatalities among pedestrians remains a topical issue in Poland. For many years, this percentage has remained at around 30% of all those who were killed on the road. At the same time, there is an increase in the use of electronic devices by pedestrians and cyclists that may affect their perception when crossing the road. This can lead to traffic accidents. In order to investigate the problem, field studies...
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Nanosilver-loaded PMMA bone cement doped with different bioactive glasses – evaluation of cytocompatibility, antibacterial activity, and mechanical properties
PublicationNanosilver-loaded PMMA bone cement (BC-AgNp) is a novel cement developed as a replacement for conventional cements. Despite favorable properties and antibacterial activity, BC-AgNp still lacks biodegradability and bioactivity. Hence, we investigated the doping with bioactive glasses (BGs) to create a new bioactive BC characterized by time-varying porosity and gradual release of nanosilver. The BC Cemex was used as the base material...
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High-Temperature Oxidation of Heavy Boron-Doped Diamond Electrodes: Microstructural and Electrochemical Performance Modification
PublicationIn this work, we reveal in detail the effects of high-temperature treatment in air at 600 °C on the microstructure as well as the physico-chemical and electrochemical properties of boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrodes. The thermal treatment of freshly grown BDD electrodes was applied, resulting in permanent structural modifications of surface depending on the exposure time. High temperature affects material corrosion, inducing...
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Electrodes criticality: the impact of CRMs in the leachate electrochemical oxidation
Publication. Landfill leachate possesses high concentrations of ammonia, micropollutants, and heavy metals, and are characterised for low biodegradability. For this reason, conventional treatment technologies may result ineffective for complete pollutant removal. Electrochemical oxidation allows most of the of recalcitrant pollutants to be oxidised effectively within an easy operational and acceptable retention time, without the need to provide...
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Be fearless: Positive affect as a mediator between venturesomeness and self-efficacy in future entrepreneurs and managers
PublicationIntroduction and objectives Self-efficacy, personality and different affect states in entrepreneurs and managers are important factors for effectiveness and well-being. The aim of the study was to examine in young adults during entrepreneurship-related education, the relationships between venturesomeness and self-efficacy, and the mediating effects of positive affect and positive emotions (joviality, self-assurance, attentiveness)...
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Seasonal variability and morphological structure of bacteria in the Admiralty Bay (King George Island, Antarctic).
PublicationIntroduction: The aim of investigations was to state whether melting glaciers cause mass mortality of the sea stenohalyne organisms, what in consequence can lead to an increase of accumulation and growth of psychrophilic bacteria. It may be also that fresh melting water is unfavourable to the sea bacteria and front glacier's regions are not the areas of their intensive development. Methods: Field investigations were done in Admiralty...
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Rheological, Mechanical, Microstructural and Radiation Shielding Properties of Cement Pastes Containing Magnetite (Fe3O4) Nanoparticles
PublicationThis work examines the influence of iron oxide nanoparticles (Fe3O4 NPs) on neutron and gamma-ray radiation shielding characteristics of Portland cement paste. Experimental evaluations were supplemented with theoretical studies using NXCom program. Portland cement pastes with 5, 10, 15, 20, and 30 wt% of nanomagnetite cement replacement were produced. Moreover, rheological, early strength development, compressive strength, and...
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The impact of training and neurotrophins on functional recovery after spinal cord transection: cellular and molecular mechanisms contributing to motor improvement
PublicationBeneficial effects of locomotor training on the functional recovery after complete transection of the spinal cord indicate that in chronic spinal animals spontaneous recovery processes are enhanced and shaped by the training. The mechanisms of that use-dependent improvement are still not fully understood. This review tackles three aspects of this issue: (1) neurochemical attributes of functional improvement...
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Positive management of the university
PublicationAbstract: The prevailing view held at contemporary Polish universities is that their main goal is to achieve effects measured by indicators, which applies to each element of their mission: education, research and the third mission, whereas the means to accomplish this goal consists of increasing the requirements and motivating by the “carrot and stick” approach. That approach discounts the importance of building a positive relationship...
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Risk Assessment Due To Customs Delays In Supply Chains By Fuzzy Logic
PublicationDue to violations of existing trade relations, cargo flows between the European Union and Ukraine have been redistributed. As a result, new supply chains have been created that have increased the tension on ground transport, including road and rail. Unfortunately, this has caused significant delays when crossing the border, which has led to a greater increase in the total delivery time of goods. Therefore, to plan for effective...
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Organic Supercritical Thermodynamic Cycles with Isothermal Turbine
PublicationOrganic Rankine cycles (ORC) are quite popular, but the overall efficiencies of these plants are rather very low. Numerous studies have been conducted in many scientific centers and research centers to improve the efficiency of such cycles. The research concerns both the modification of the cycle and the increase in the parameters of the medium at the inlet to the turbine. However, the efficiency of even these modified cycles rarely...
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Bisphenol A analogues and metabolic syndrome in women with polycystic ovary syndrome
PublicationBisphenols (BPs) have become a chemical group of special interest due to their ability to interfere with the endocrine system and their ubiquitous presence in the environment. As some of them possess mild estrogenic and anti-androgenic effects, they might be associated with the diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). Acting on multiple tissues, BPs exposure may lead to metabolic derangements characteristic for metabolic...
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Human Resource Management Digitalisation in Multidisciplinary Ship Design Companies
PublicationThe digitalisation in the ship design sector is currently applied to the design process itself and is well defined, partially standardised and practically implemented by both independent design companies and the design departments of shipyards. The situation is similar in other sectors of engineering. However, the requirements for the digitalisation of other processes in design and engineering companies have not previously been...
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Net-zero carbon condition in wastewater treatment plants: A systematic review of mitigation strategies and challenges
PublicationThe wastewater sector accounts for up to 7 and 10% of anthropogenic CH4 and N2O emissions, respectively. Nowadays wastewater treatment plants are going through a paradigm shift to approach a net-zero carbon condition. Numerous ongoing measures have taken place to identify the sources of greenhouse gases and minimize the carbon footprint. This paper systematically reviews all known practices leading towards net-zero carbon wastewater...
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Load introduction to composite columns revisited—Significance of force allocation and shear connection stiffness
PublicationThe AISC 360-16 Specification recommends that the design shear force between parts of a composite column in the load introduction area shall be calculated based on the force allocation at ultimate limit state. Applicability of this straightforward method to the load levels that usually arise in slender composite columns is questionable, as this capacity-based force allocation is only true when the axial force is equal to the plastic...
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Financial Consequences of the Introduction of the Fit For 55 on the Example of Poland
PublicationIn Europe and in Poland, there is a growing conviction that climate action is a necessity. When creating long-term strategies or making current decisions, companies are increasingly taking into account issues related to sustainable development and reducing CO2 emissions. Following the signing of the Paris Agreement in 2015, countries around the world pledged to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 so that the average temperature...
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The semi-Markov model of the process of appearance of sea-going ship propupsion system ability and inability states in application to determining the reliablity of these systems
PublicationThe article presents possible application of the theory of semi-Markov processes in creating the eight-state model of the process of appearance of the propulsion systems ability and inability states on sea-going vessels performing transportation tasks in a relatively long operating time t (t → ∞). The model has been proved to be able to be successfully used for determining the reliability of the abovementioned systems. The probability...
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Aspects of intergranular corrosion of AISI 321 stainless steel in high-carbon-containing environments
PublicationPurpose – The purpose of this paper is to present a case study of unexpected sensitization to intergranular corrosion of highly resistant AISI 321 steel in petrochemical conditions, where it was subjected to the simultaneous influence of elevated temperature of 250°C and vapors from the asphalt production process. Design/methodology/approach – Corrosion coupons were exposed in an installation carrying asphalt vapors. To identify...
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Multi-region fuzzy logic controller with local PID controllers for U-tube steam generator in nuclear power plant
PublicationIn the paper, analysis of multi-region fuzzy logic controller with local PID controllers for steam generator of pressurized water reactor (PWR) working in wide range of thermal power changes is presented. The U-tube steam generator has a nonlinear dynamics depending on thermal power transferred from coolant of the primary loop of the PWR plant. Control of water level in the steam generator conducted by a traditional PID controller...
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Density functional theory calculations on entire proteins for free energies of binding: Application to a model polar binding site
PublicationIn drug optimization calculations, the molecular mechanics Poisson-Boltzmann surface area (MM-PBSA) method can be used to compute free energies of binding of ligands to proteins. The method involves the evaluation of the energy of configurations in an implicit solvent model. One source of errors is the force field used, which can potentially lead to large errors due to the restrictions in accuracy imposed by its empirical nature....
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Social Entrepreneurship Research – Challenges, Explanations and Suggestions for the Field Development
PublicationEmploying critical review and reflection on the key literature in the area of entrepreneurship and management studies in social entrepreneurship field, this paper aims to outline the current challenges this field is facing, while introducing related explanations and suggesting required changes. The current field of social entrepreneurship research is at its nascent stage, which is determined by ongoing definitional debates and...
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Experimental and numerical study on deformed steel columns subjected to impact load during earthquakes
PublicationThe soft-storey failure is one of the most typical types of damage observed in buildings during earthquakes. The failure of an upper soft storey of a structure results in large impact load acting on the lower floors and if the resistance of the structural members of the lower storeys is not sufficient it may further lead to progressive collapse of the whole building. The aim of the present paper is to investigate the dynamic behaviour...
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The effect of fishing basin construction on the behaviour of a footbrdge over the port channel
PublicationThe paper analyses possible causes of failure of the rotating footbridge over the Ustka port channel. In July, 2015, strange behaviour of this object was observed in the form of excessive vibrations of bridge platform suspension rods, with the accompanying acoustic effects. A preliminary geotechnical analysis has revealed that this destructive effect was caused by the nearby construction works, namely construction of a fishing...
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Non-Isocyanate-Based Waterborne Polyurethanes
PublicationNon-isocyanate polyurethanes (NIPUs) are a greener alternative for the conventional polyurethanes synthesized using toxic and moisture-sensitive di- or polyisocyanates. The most often described method of NIPU synthesis involves the reaction of five-membered cyclic carbonates with amines, and resulting polymers containing primary and secondary hydroxyl groups (so they are also known as polyhydroxyurethanes), which can be further...
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Pharmaceuticals and another groups of emerging contaminants: Occurrence and sources in Admiralty Bay (King George Island, Maritime Antarctica)
PublicationEveryday live activities may introduce a wide range of chemicals into wastewater systems. In this study presence of selected types of pharmaceuticals from cardiovascular system group, nervous and muscolo-skeleton system group, antimicrobial agents, genitourinary and sex hormones were tested in the wastewater from H. Arctowski Antarctic station. Moreover, the receiver of discharged wastewater (Admiralty Bay) were also studied. Considering...
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CaO-based high temperature CO2 sorbents – Literature review
PublicationThe use of CaO-based adsorbents has a high potential to capture CO2 from various systems due to its high reactivity with CO2, high capacity, and low cost of naturally derived CaO. The application of CaO-based sorbents to remove carbon dioxide is based on a reversible reaction between CaO and CO2. However, multiple carbonation/calcination cycles lead to a rapid reduction in the sorption capacity of natural CaO, and therefore efforts...
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Time window based features extraction from temperature modulated gas sensors for prediction of ammonia concentration
PublicationElectronic gas recognition systems, in literature commonly referred as electronic noses, enable the recognition of a type and a concentration of various volatile compounds. Typical electronic gas-analyzing device consists of four main elements, namely, gas delivery subsystem, an array of gas sensors, data acquisition and power supply circuits and data analysis software. The commercially available metal-oxide TGS sensors are widely...
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How can the work environment be redesigned to enhance the well-being of individuals with autism?
PublicationPurpose – This article examines the opportunities to create optimal conditions for individuals with autism, to work successfully within the contemporary workplace and improve their well-being. These opportunities arise from digital technology (DT) development, enabling the work environment to be remodeled by providing new possibilities and ways of working. The author discusses both technology-based as well as non-technological accommodations...
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Tolerance-Aware Optimization of Microwave Circuits by Means of Principal Directions and Domain-Restricted Metamodels
PublicationPractical microwave design is most often carried out in the nominal sense. Yet, in some cases, performance degradation due to uncertainties may lead to the system failing to meet the prescribed specifications. Reliable uncertainty quantification (UQ) is therefore important yet intricate from numerical standpoint, especially when the circuit at hand is to be evaluated using electromagnetic (EM) simulation tools. Tolerance-aware...
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Properties of Oxygen Vacancy and Hydrogen Interstitial Defects in Strontium Titanate: DFT + Ud,p Calculations
PublicationThis work presents extensive theoretical studies focused on the mixed ion-electron transport in cubic strontium titanate (STO). A new approach to the description of this difficult system was developed within the framework of linear-scaling Kohn–Sham density functional theory, as realized in the ONETEP program. The description we present is free of any empirical parameters and relies on the Hubbard U and Hund’s J corrections applied...
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The Effects of Pin Profile on HDPE Thermomechanical Phenomena during FSW
PublicationFriction stir welding (FSW) of polymeric materials has recently attracted significant attention. Herein, we present the effect of the tool pin profile on the FSW of high-density polyethylene (HDPE) joints through joint experimental analysis and thermomechanical simulations. For analysis of pin profile effects on the thermomechanical properties of HDPE joints, frustum (FPT), cubic (CPT), and triangular (TPT) pin shapes were selected...
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Highly Dissipative Materials for Damage Protection against Earthquake-Induced Structural Pounding
PublicationIt is a common situation that seismic excitations may lead to collisions between adjacent civil engineering structures. This phenomenon, called earthquake-induced structural pounding, may result in serious damage or even the total collapse of the colliding structures. Filling the gap between two buildings erected close to one another by using visco-elastic materials can be considered to be one of the most effective methods to avoid...